Some basic expressions when apologizing

1. SORRY… or how to apologize
José Antonio Alcalde
As Elton John´s song goes, “Sorry seems to be the hardest word”, so we should teach our students of English
how to express they are sorry in different situations. In this document you will find some useful expressions for
those difficult moments. We must remember that in English-speaking countries apologizing is much more
frequent than in other places. Also take into account that context will be key when choosing the right
expressions (how serious the problem was, who we are apologizing to, what relationship we have, when and
where we are talking, etc.)
Here are the 5 SIMPLE STEPS to follow (but not always all of them):
- Acknowledge there was a mistake / problem
- Determine responsibilities
- Apologize
- Offer to repair the problem / mistake if possible
- Express willingness to do better in the future
ACKNOWLEDGING THE MISTAKE
Informal expressions Formal expressions
Oops! / Whoops!
Oh no! / Oh man! / Oh-oh!
Oh my God / Oh my Gosh! / OMG!
** Oh crap! / Oh shit! (very rude)
Houston, we got a problem!
I can't believe it!
Something doesn´t smell right!
Something is fishy / smelly!
Something is up! / What is going on?!
Dear heavens! / Oh dear! / Oh my goodness! (old-fashioned)
I am afraid... / I believe … / I think ….
There seems to be something wrong
I may be wrong but …
DETERMING RESPONSIBILITIES
Informal expressions Formal expressions
Oh, my bad / My fault
It was me / you / him / her / us / them
I had that wrong
Someone messed up
My fault, bro / sis / mate / dude...
That was wrong of … (me / him / her / us / them..)
(Somebody) crossed the line!
(Somebody) was in the wrong
(Somebody) should apologize for…
All is not what it seems
I take full responsibility for...
How careless of me / you / him / her / us / them!
I shouldn´t have…
I would like to apologize for…
Whose fault / mistake is it?
APOLOGIZING
Informal expressions Formal expressions
Sorry! / So sorry!
Sorry about that!
I’m so / very / extremely / terribly sorry
My apologies
I hope you can forgive me / Please forgive me
Please don´t be mad at me
That was wrong of me
I’d like to apologize
I want to apologize
I owe you an apology
I wanted to tell you I’m sorry
I sincerely apologize for…
Please accept my (sincere / deepest) apologies
I can´t express / say how sorry I am
It was inexcusable

2. OFFERING REPAIR
Informal expressions Formal expressions
Of course, I will...
I can ...
Is there anything I could do?
I could …
If I could just ...
EXPRESSING WILLINGNESS TO DO BETTER
Informal expressions Formal expressions
Next time I will be more careful!
I promise I will …
It won't happen again
Doubtless next time...
You have my word on this
Practice your apologizing skills for these situations:
1) Your best friend lent you his/her car and you had a little accident with it
2) Your son´s dog ate your neighbor’s favorite flowers (again)
3) You forgot to do your homework again this week and your teacher is really upset
4) In a shop your daughter accidentally broke an expensive object in front of the shop-assistant
5) You forgot to buy the special ingredient your mother needs for a recipe
6) A police officer stops you because you are driving with one arm out of the window
7) The telephone company calls you because you are late in your last month's payment
8) Your partner calls you after waiting for you for over one hour where you agreed to meet
9) Your landlord / landlady comes to complain about last night noise in your flat
10) You agreed to go on holidays with your brother but now you changed your mind and have different plans